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Manufacturing Building Materials from Plants and Waste

With a bit of processing, common materials can be made into high-performance building materials, such as pollution-eating roofing and concrete.

In some applications, fiberglass insulation, foam insulation, and wood can be replaced by manufactured alternatives that are made from waste materials and select raw materials.

Cellulose offers huge potential for building materials. When processed, cellulose can be made into materials that replace wood, plastic, and brick. It’s already used as insulation, sourced from recycled newspapers.

Cellulose is an organic polymer that gives green plants their structural integrity. Wood is 40 to 50 per cent cellulose, dried hemp is about 45 per cent cellulose, and cotton fiber contains about 90 per cent cellulose. As a waste material found in waste paper, cardboard, and textiles, cellulose is abundant and can be used to create a material to replace wood and plastic.